Statement & Releases

I write this as a Malaysian, as someone who, over forty seven years of political life, has had the privilege of playing some small part in the formation our country, the building of its institutions, and our achievement of a degree of economic sufficiency. I write out of deep concern about the present state of our country.

In the lives of nations as of individuals, there come moments of profound possibility, when the potential for self-transcendence and for self-destruction are simultaneously present.

As before some critical examination in our youth, we come to the daunting realization that we hold our future in our hands, when how we will fare many years hence, and whether we shall flourish or languish, will depend on how we conduct ourselves now, in this small window of time.

Barisan Nasional has been defeated and shamed on a scale without precedent in our history. Alongside losing our 2/3rds majority in Parliament, we have lost a record number of states to the Opposition, including the premier state and the home state of the Prime Minister.

This is not just a blow to BN and to UMNO but to the nation as a whole. We now face a period of uncertainty such as we have never experienced before. BN and UMNO’s legitimacy and strength have been the bedrock of national unity and of Malaysia’s successful development since Independence. All this is now in question.

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